Jeremy Matthews

Hello. My name is Jeremy Matthews and I would consider it a great honor to serve on the Board for the International Towing and Recovery Museum. I was born in Cartersville, GA in March of 1978. I was born into and have grown up in the towing industry. I am a 3rd generation tower. My grandfather, Mack Matthews, started Matthews Garage, Inc. in 1962. He had a small, 2 bay shop and just one tow truck. In 1972, my father, Ricky Matthews, joined the family business. I joined the business in 1996. We have grown a lot over the last 21 years. We now have 3 locations that include a body shop, a truck repair shop, and an automotive repair shop. As of today, we have 34 trucks and 35 employees.

In 2004, Matthews Garage became a Distributor for NRC Industries, a tow truck manufacturer based out of Canada. In 2009, NRC started training classes on the use of their trucks. I was asked to be a part of the training team. In 2014, I was asked by Norbert Pigeon and Bruce Jackson of NRC Industries to be the Lead Instructor for NRC training classes. In 2016, we held several training classes around the United States and also had several Demonstrations at different events.

Matthews Garage is a part of the TRIP program in Georgia. TRIP (Towing and Recovery Incentive Program) is a program to help improve management of large scale commercial incidents. These incidents can greatly affect traffic. TRIP requires certain training and classes to be on their program. I am Wreckmaster 6/7A Certified. I have also had Flagger training and Continuing Education training.

I have always been a supporter of the towing association on a local as well as a national lever. I am the Region 1 Director for TRAG, the Towing and Recovery Association of Georgia. I attend regular TRAG meetings to keep up to date on the changing aspects of our profession. I also attend TRIP meetings and ARI meetings. These meetings help with the support and cooperation between the towing industry, the police force, as well as firefighters, EMS, and HERO units. We all have to work as a team to keep the roads cleared quickly, but safely.

SAFETY. That is a big issue. Safety in our industry is so important. I feel our safety as wrecker drivers and the safety of our employees definitely needs attention. The epidemic of losing operators on the side of the road is a very tragic and serious issue that needs attention. We need to continue the fight for the SLOW DOWN MOVE OVER laws. We need to make sure every tow truck driver, policeman, firefighter, paramedic, and HERO unit goes home to their family every night. I know the best part of my day is going home to my wife and kids.

In closing, I would appreciate your consideration to be on the Board of the Towing Museum. I would bring new ideas and always be open to everyone’s opinion. I feel I bring value to the board with my experience in training, leadership, and working out on the roads. It would be a privilege to represent the towing industry. I feel I can be an instrumental part in helping the museum to continue to succeed. Thank you for your time and your consideration.